Board member donates land for hospice house

A new 10-bed hospice house that would serve the Piedmont region could be a reality within the next few years thanks to a recent donation of land.

Hospice of the Rapidan board member Robert Niles donated 14.6 acres of his nearly 350-acre property in Fauquier County in order to build a new 20,000-square-foot facility on Royalls Mills Road in Sumerduck.

The proposed facility would serve residents in Culpeper, Orange, Madison, Fauquier, and Rappahannock counties.

But before construction workers break ground, Hospice of the Rapidan must receive a special exception permit from Fauquier County’s planning commission and final approval from its Board of Supervisors to begin building the two-story facility.

The proposed property is currently zoned agricultural.

Pending land approval, Hospice administrators must still raise money for the project “roughly estimated” around $4 million.

“Hospice is a very good thing,” said Niles, an 85-year-old retired attorney. “Hospice tried to get approval in several other areas, but didn’t succeed and we just had this land and offered it to them.”

Once the land is approved, hospice administrators will begin a capital campaign to raise money for the building and to staff it.

Kathy Clements, executive director for Hospice of the Rapidan and a registered nurse, said a recent feasibility study determined that there was an “overwhelming need” for a hospice house in this region.

“The community is aging,” said Clements. “Our percentage of people that were aging is higher than a lot of areas around us. So when we were looking at that need, that’s what they were taking into account.”

The facility will feature spacious bedrooms, dining area, community gathering area, play area, gardens, and commercial kitchen.

“It’s going to be as homelike as possible,” Clements said. “It’s not going to be like you’re walking into a nursing home or hospital.”

Without an existing hospice house, nurses travel to patient’s homes or nursing facilities to provide their services.

Clements pointed out, hospice care isn’t solely for senior citizens. It provides support for those with terminal illnesses, such as cancer, AIDS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Uphill battles
On two occasions, Hospice administrators tried to file applications to build a facility on 10 acres but were met with opposition in Culpeper and faced drainage issues in Remington.

The organization wanted to build near Ashborne Farms, a subdivision in Culpeper near the intersection of Ryland Chapel Road and Mt. Zion Church Road.

When neighbors opposed, Clements said she backed off and withdrew the application.

“We want to be in a neighborhood where people want us,” Clements added.